Painful Decision
by Brielle.Page
Summary: After Daisy is ambushed by an unaccounted LMD, she makes a foolish decision that ends up causing her more pain than she anticipated.
1. Chapter 1

* **I do NOT own Agents of Shield or its characters. All rights belong to Marvel and its creators.***

"Daisy. Hey, Daisy."

Daisy looked up, jolting slightly at the voice that pierced through her thoughts. Lincoln stood at Daisy's side, a hand on her shoulder.

"Sorry," Daisy sighed, running her hands though her short dark hair. "I wasn't listening."

"I can see that," Lincoln said slowly. "You were rubbing your gauntlets pretty aggressively. Want to tell me what that's about?"

Daisy sighed again and shoved her chair back with a screech, leaving Lincoln standing by the table where she was sitting a moment ago.

"Daisy wha-"

"Not right now, Lincoln," she snapped. "I need a moment." Her sudden anger didn't stop her from touching her gauntlets, the past plastered in the back of her mind. She shivered, the chill running down her spine and she yanked her fingers away from the cold metal. Daisy rounded the corner of the hallway and saw another agent walking towards her. He was a friend, a new recruit who had just started training.

"Hey, Davidson," she nodded and gave him a small smile.

Her head screamed in alarm when he didn't smile back, but she couldn't react fast enough. Davidson pulled a knife, shoving it towards her, his face emotionless, and his eyes vacant. Daisy gasped, only reacting quickly enough to pull her hands up, her power rushing through her gauntlets. She quaked Davidson, sending him flying into the brick wall behind them. She watched Davidson's head come flying off, blood spewing everywhere. Her heart pounding, Daisy stood there, her arms still outstretched. The world had vacuumed into a silent bubble, the silence foggy. What had she done? She just murdered an agent. Frantically, her brown eyes searched the mess. She breathed air of relief when she saw sparks light up in the midst of the carnage thrown against the wall.

"Daisy!" Lincoln yelled, rushing to her side. She could feel his footsteps before she felt his hands grabbing her biceps in anxiousness as he pulled her face to his. "Are you alright?"

She could tell her face was pale, and she didn't trust her voice, so she just nodded. Slowly, the world began to pick up speed again as more agents noticed the chaos and Daisy watched everything unfold before her.

"Tremors," Mack huffed, now standing at her side. "You good?"

"Yeah," she looked up at his face, her hands now shaking. "Davidson. He's an LMD. How did that happen?"

"Aida must still have some stashed in the base. We're all on it. Davidson is fine. He's in training. Daisy." Mack took Daisy by the shoulders and turned her towards him. "Look at me. Davidson is alive. That wasn't him. You did good."

Daisy nodded again, the shock wearing off. She winced at Mack's hug, but he didn't seem to notice.

"I-I need to go," Daisy gasped and turned away from Mack, shoving her way down the hallway.

Daisy reached her room and shut the door behind her. She sucked in ragged breaths, tears threatening to spill over, but she kept her cool. She closed her eyes and took a deep breath, calming some of the nerves. As she calmed down, and her heart rate slowed, the pain began to take over. She could feel it like fire spreading through her veins. Her trembling hands grabbed the hem of her shirt and gently pulled it to expose her bare abdomen. Grimacing, Daisy sucked in a breath, the cool air stinging the revealed flesh. From her lower left side near the belt loop of her jeans, almost to her rib cage, was a long, deep knife wound. She hadn't noticed anything had happened until Mack hugged her, and then the pain had hit her. Her black jacket had hidden the dark red blood that had begun to pool beneath it.

 _Okay_ , Daisy said to herself. _Clean it first, and then assess the damage_.

She went to the small sink on the wall and cranked open the tap, the clear water rushing out. Her eyes went out of focus as she thought of the waterfall. She had tried to save him. She wanted to do anything to save him, but she hadn't been able to, so he had drowned after breaking his body on the waterfall's rocks. A tear fell into the sink only to be swallowed up by the raging current already traveling down the drain. Blinking, Daisy quickly swiped the tear away with a slim finger. Instead of thinking anymore, she grabbed a towel and drenched it in the cold water. Then she took a breath, steadying herself against the smooth surface, and squeezed water over the wound.

"Damn it," Daisy gasped as the burning sensation swarmed around the cut flesh. It stung like a flame was lighting her skin on fire, and Daisy lost all the air inside her lungs as she panted from the pain. She continued though, and cleaned until she could properly see the wound. It wasn't as deep as she had thought; she could probably get away without stitches. Why hadn't she just gone to Simmons? She didn't know why, really.

"Doesn't matter now," she whispered to herself, applying a clean bandage and grabbing a new shirt and jacket.

 ** _48 hours later_**

"Daisy," she heard and spun around, clipboard in hand.

"Yeah Bobbi?" She widened her eyes at the tall blonde who stood before her.

"Mission assignment details in the lab in 5," the young woman smirked at Daisy before passing her.

"No problem," she replied. She'd have to get back to Robbie about the Inhuman project she'd been working on for him. Tucking the clipboard under her arm, Daisy headed to the lab to be debriefed.

Daisy walked into the lab and towards the circular table in the center which had mission information plastered in the air. She rested her palms against the smooth surface and took a deep breath, her fingers brushing over her side. The light sensation aggravated her wound though, and her abdomen muscles involuntarily retracted.

"How you doing?" Lincoln said with a small smile.

"Why do you ask?" she tensed.

"You look tired is all," he shrugged, but not before a brief glance of worry passed her way.

Bobbi walked in behind Daisy, followed by Hunter, who was talking, May, Mack, Fitz, Simmons, and finally Coulson.

Daisy inhaled quietly, the pain a dull burn in her skin. She only hung her head for a moment before lifting it to give Coulson her attention.

"Okay everyone," he said. "This Inhuman has been spotted numerous times, and he's injured several people. Let's get him before it's fatalities."

"I have video of where he's been spotted the most," Simmons said. "Mostly I've found evidence of him hanging around the Faxon Warehouse. It's been abandoned for several years and there's usually no security detail."

Daisy was having trouble focusing on Jemma's voice. She could feel the table beneath her palms swaying, so she increased her grip on the edge to keep upright.

"Daisy," Bobbi whispered next to her. "Are you alright?"

Daisy gasped at her voice, but nodded fervently. "Yeah," she huffed.

"You look sick," Bobbi whispered back. "You're sweating, Daisy."

"I'm fine, Bobbi," Daisy said with as much confidence as she could muster. It was harder to breath and she could see the agents across from her wavering in her vision.

"May, Hunter and I will go to the east door," Coulson was saying, "and Bobbi, Lincoln, Mack and Daisy will take the west door. Lincoln and Daisy, you take on the Inhuman if necessary."

"Yes, sir," Lincoln nodded.

Everyone turned their attention to Daisy who was still hunched over, breathing heavily.

"Daisy?" Coulson asked, his eyes narrowing, and his forehead crinkling with worry.

"Hey," Bobbi placed a hand on Daisy's shoulder, but even the gentle movement caused Daisy to jump like she'd been electrocuted.

"What?" Daisy gasped, her face pale as sweat glistened on her forehead.

"Are you okay, Daisy?" Coulson asked.

"Y-yeah. I-I'm-" Daisy stopped suddenly as the world grew black. The pain in her side intensified and her mind grew foggy, her lungs refusing to work. Her legs gave out and she fell into Bobbi, the agent's eyes widening as she fought to catch Daisy's limp body in her arms.

"Daisy!" was all Bobbi could get out as she drew the young girl into her, cradling her. Daisy was on fire, her skin hot and sweaty. Her shirt clung to her and her dark hair was smeared against her forehead. Bobbi grabbed Daisy, but even in her unconscious state, she cried out, jerking away from Bobbi's hand. That's when Bobbi spotted the blood that stained Daisy's shirt and her hand.

Everyone in the room was crowded around Bobbi who was still cradling Daisy on the cement floor. Bobbi looked up at their faces, worry plastered on every single one.

"What-" Lincoln started.

"What the hell just happened, Luv?" Hunter asked.

"Simmons," Bobbi looked at Jemma, her eyes pleading.

"Get her to the med bay," Jemma nodded.

Mack gently took Daisy in his huge arms, the young girl light and terribly pale. He could feel how hot her body was; it was radiating heat.


	2. Chapter 2

Mack placed Daisy on an empty bed, and stepped away, which allowed room for Simmons to examine her.

She came in right behind Mack, already pulling on latex gloves. She reached Daisy, immediately going for the blood spot that stained her shirt. She pulled the material away, revealing the bandage.

"When did this happen?" She asked the group that was huddle in the med bay. They all shook their heads.

"I just saw Daisy before debriefing and she seemed fine," Bobbi said.

"There was the incident with the LMD a few days ago, but I talked to Daisy, saw her. She was fine," Mack said. "What else could it be?"

"The bandage she has on here is massive," Jemma said, her tone not very positive. She unwrapped the bandage, slowly revealing more blood.

"Oh my god," Jemma gasped as she saw Daisy's wound. It was red around the cut flesh, and there was yellow pus in the wound. "It's terribly infected," she said, searching the wound. She looked up at the people standing around. "Bobbi, could you get clean bandages, and Fitz, get me the Terrasil."

The two went to retrieve the items and returned, requested supplies in hand. Jemma had Daisy hooked up to an IV, pumping fluids into her, and she had just finished taking her temperature.

"How is it?" Coulson asked, concern evident in his voice.

"One hundred and two," Jemma replied, her eyes worried. "Why didn't she come to me? She came to me when she was Lone Ranger-ing and keeping away from S.H.I.E.L.D. months ago." Simmons paused and quieted slightly, not really talking to anyone in particular. "Well, she did get shot then," she shook her head, her frustration apparent. "But why wouldn't she come to me now?"

"I don't know," Coulson sighed and put his hands on his hips. His eyes were dark with worry. "Can you get the infection out of her?"

Simmons gave a small smile. "Nothing some antibiotics can't cure." Her face darkened just a little as she continued. "Her condition wouldn't be this bad if she had gotten proper treatment earlier. I have to wait until she wakes up so I can ask her what on earth she was thinking."

Coulson chuckled. The young Englishwoman was so very proper, even in her scolding. He gave Daisy one more glance, noting how pale and feverish she looked, before turning away.

"Could you let me know when she wakes up?" He asked Simmons.

"Of course, Sir," She nodded.

Daisy was aware of a very sharp, cool smell. It smelled like a lab coat had just been cleaned. She moved her hand, feeling the hard yet smooth sheets beneath her. She lifted a shaky hand to her face. It was so cold, and her face felt so hot. Mustering what little energy she had, Daisy forced her eyes open. She was in the small, white room where she had stayed for days after she had been shot three years ago. She turned her head to the right and she saw an IV stand by her shoulder. Her eyes followed the tube and saw that it was connected at her hand. Grunting, Daisy pushed her legs over the side of the bed, swinging into an upright position. Why was she in here? She couldn't remember- wait. That's right. The LMD. The knife wound. She sighed, her hand automatically brushing over her side. Immediately she jerked her hand away as it caused her pain. Gritting her teeth, Daisy started to push off the bed, but a voice stopped her.

"No!" The muffled voice said through the window. "What are you doing?"

Daisy sighed, hanging her head. Simmons came around and opened the door to the little room, her face scolding her.

"It's like you have a sensor for when my butt lifts off the bed," Daisy groaned.

"Back in it," Simmons said sternly.

"I just want to stretch my leg-"

"Now," Simmons interrupted as she came over carrying a syringe. "You have an awfully infected wound along with a fever of," she paused as she read the thermometer attached to Daisy. "one hundred and one. You will NOT leave this bed until your fever has broken and there is noticeable improvement to your wound."

Daisy sighed again, lifting her face to the ceiling.

"Sighing and rolling your eyes will not get you out of this bed any faster," Simmons said. "Now turn and face me. I need to give you another dose of the antibiotics."

Daisy struggled to roll on her elbow. The wound screamed in protest anytime she moved, or even breathed. She hissed loudly, her face scrunching in pain.

Simmons looked at her, her eyebrows raised. "I'm good," Daisy said, but she clearly wasn't.

"You're most definitely not good. What on earth were you thinking? Hiding a knife wound like this? Had you not passed out and continued on with your charade, you could be in a much worse situation," Simmons suddenly spat out.

"I thought I'd be fine. I cleaned it and I didn't think it needed stitches," Daisy sighed.

"What did you clean it with?" Simmons looked at Daisy eagerly.

"Water," Daisy whispered.

"Water?" Simmons gasped. "That does nothing to clean it, only wash away blood. Sterile chemicals, or even alcohol if you're desperate, but never water."

Simmons sighed, pausing for a moment. "Why didn't you come to me?"

"I-" Daisy stopped. "I don't know. I just…didn't."

"You can always come to me, Daisy. No matter the circumstance. This would be a very different situation if you had. Now, you need more medicine; you've barely improved," Simmons said as she carefully lifted Daisy's shirt.

"But I _have_ improved," Daisy raised an eyebrow and pointed a finger at her as Simmons slowly removed the bandage, causing Daisy to gasp and her breath to hitch.

"Sorry," Simmons gave Daisy an apologetic look.

Daisy craned her neck to see her exposed side, and she grimaced at the sight. The wound was oozing pus and the redness had spread way beyond the edges of the wound. She inhaled, her abdomen muscles once again pulling away from Simmons' hands.

"Do you want something to hold while I do this?" Simmons asked, syringe in hand.

Daisy could feel the sweat beading on her forehead, and she could already feel herself deteriorating again. She grunted, biting her lip. "No." She shook her head. "Do it."

"Alright," Simmons shrugged.

Medicine in hand, the scientist-turned-doctor placed a hand on Daisy's side, steadying her. A second later, Daisy felt the needle, thin and sharp, pierce her tender side. Without wanting to, she gasped, tensing every muscle in her body. It burned like fire, and she could feel the antibiotics being forced into her system. It was cool relief in her warm body, but it still brought pain. Suddenly, the world began to dissolve around her. Simmons was spinning in front of her, and she felt the bed moving under her.

"What-"

"I'm so sorry, Daisy," Simmons said. "I had to. You wouldn't listen to me and you'd only injure yourself further by ignoring rest. This is the only way you'll sit tight and heal properly."

"You-" Daisy blinked, trying to collect her thoughts, but it was hard to concentrate with her vision blurring. "You drugged me," she gasped when her mind could finally connect the dots.

"It's perfectly safe," Simmons stammered. "You just need to heal, and the only way to get your temperature down is to _stay in bed_ and rest."

"Simmons…" Daisy felt her hand drop, just like the last of her words as the medication dragged her down into a dark, incarcerating sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

***I do not own Agents of Shield or its characters. They belong to Marvel and its creators.***

"Oh my god," Simmons closed her eyes and shook her head. Daisy was sprawled out on the small bed, her head resting on her outstretched forearm. Her gentle breathing would usually be comforting, but Simmons watched as her side hitched with every inhale. She pulled the blankets up over Daisy's waist which gave the strange looking situation a little more normality. Simmons took a deep breath before whispering to herself. "What have I done?"

"Jemma." Simmons whipped around, the all too familiar voice the last thing she wanted to hear at the moment.

"Fitz," Jemma gasped, hiding the syringe behind her back. "I-I didn't hear you come in."

"Are you alright?" He asked, stepping closer.

"Yes, of course," Jemma tried to give Fitz a small smile. "I just gave Daisy more medicine and told her to rest."

"Why's she sleeping like that?" Fitz questioned, gesturing to Daisy's unusual position.

"Oh, ah," Simmons struggled to come up with a relevant answer. "The wound on her side causes her pain to sleep on her back, so I suggested trying to sleep on her side. See if that helps." Simmons surprised even herself that she was able to come up with an answer as plausible as it was.

Fitz shrugged. "Fair enough."

"Um, why don't we step out to give her some space. Let her sleep," Simmons shoved the syringe in her lab coat pocket and nudged Fitz out the door.

"Uh, sure," a surprised Fitz stuttered.

Simmons turned and closed the white, metal door behind them, breathing a silent sigh of relief. What she had done was terribly stupid and she was almost caught not five seconds after she'd done the deed.

"Simmons," Coulson approached her and Fitz. "How's Daisy?"

"She was awake long enough for me to give her another dose of the antibiotics, but she's resting now. I would suggest not going in the med bay for a little while. Her body is fighting against her and she needs some time to heal," Simmons said.

Coulson sighed and shoved his hands in his pockets. "Thank you," he said. "I don't know what I would have done if she'd deteriorated much more."

"Sir, this isn't your fault," Simmons placed a hand on Coulson's shoulder. "Daisy kept this from all of us. There was nothing you could have done."

"I could have noticed," he said.

"Sir," Fitz said. "We all know that once Daisy sets her mind to something, there's nothing anyone can do to change it. She's stubborn like that."

"And for some reason, Daisy didn't want to tell anyone about the accident," Simmons said.

"But why?" Coulson huffed, slapping a hand against his thigh. "We're her family. She's never pulled away from us." There was a beat of silence. "Except when-"

"This can't be about that," Simmons gasped. "I thought she made peace with what happened."

"No," Fitz said, shaking his head. "She made peace with Robbie. That doesn't mean she's at peace with herself with what happened."

"But, why would she do this to herself?" Simmons gestured angrily.

"Maybe she thinks she deserves it," Coulson said quietly. "She couldn't save him and that caused Robbie pain, so-"

"So you think she believes she deserves to suffer," Fitz finished.

Coulson nodded, his mouth closed tightly into a thin line.

Simmons groaned, feeling even worse about what she'd done. Maybe she could have talked to Daisy instead of just forcing healing upon her. She thought it was her body that needed healing, when in reality, it's Daisy's mind that needs help.

"Daisy most definitely does _not_ deserve to suffer," Simmons said shakily.

"I agree," Coulson said, "but we have to convince _her_ that."

"Robbie's convinced," Fitz said, his arms crossed.

"I can't imagine how Robbie's dealing with this," Simmons shook her head. "It's been several months, but still…"

Coulson just shook his head. "Losing a brother is…"

"Unimaginable," Fitz said.


	4. Chapter 4

**(Just for the record, I am creating a character for the point of the story's plot.)**

"Daisy!" She heard her name being called in the earpiece, but the water rushing and pounding against the rocks was deafening. "Daisy!"

"Robbie!" She called back, searching for the mocha colored skin and dark hair. Finally, she saw him, at the top of the waterfall, hands outstretched in surrender. His back was to her, but she knew it was him from his black jacket and the signature loop of chains wrapped around his torso. He risked a glance down at her, his face taught with anxiousness and his eyes were filled with fear.

Daisy ran along the shore edge, her boots pounding against the small rocks and pebbles. She had to reach Robbie.

"No!" He called in her ear, quietly, but his voice stopped her dead in her tracks. "He has _him_."

Daisy's chest rose and fell with rapid breaths, but her heart dropped into her stomach at those three simple words. No. This can't be happening.

"He's going to drop him into the waterfall. He's going to kill him, Daisy," she watched as Robbie's back heaved, his words heavy with pain.

"There has to be another way," she sighed, her head pounding. "We're going to save him, Robbie."

She craned her neck to see Robbie motioning, most likely trying to negotiate with Cassius. She scowled at the name. Cassius was a ruthless, merciless Inhuman. He was immune to her quakes and even the Ghost Rider's flames didn't blemish his skin; he was incredibly dangerous. They'd had their run in with Cassius before and he'd left them severely incapacitated.

 _We got our asses handed to us_ , Daisy thought, her heart pounding in her ears as the internal rage boiled.

Daisy had promised herself that she wouldn't let Cassius walk away again, but now here he was, his power grip around his throat, dangling him over the raging waterfall.

"Cassius," She heard Robbie's frantic voice through the earpiece. His deep, gravely tone was slightly higher pitched than usual. "Don't do this. This involves you and me, not him. Let him go."

Daisy couldn't hear Cassius' reply, but she watched him loosen his grip on the throat he had a hold of, causing Robbie to almost jump into the water.

"No! Stop!" He yelled, despair slathered in his words.

"Robbie," Daisy growled into her earpiece, "let me help you take him on."

"No, Daisy," he snapped. "You'd never get here in time. He'd drop him before either of us could move. You know he wouldn't survive in these waters."

Daisy huffed, feeling more helpless than when she didn't have powers. If her and Robbie hadn't been tracking Cassius alone, then they'd have backup right now. She remembered how Simmons had been suspicious of their actions, and Daisy's excuses for her absences had become really lame. Daisy kicked herself for not trusting her team with the information, but Robbie worked alone, or at least the Ghost Rider did. He didn't want S.H.I.E.L.D. tracking his movements.

"Cassius," Robbie's growl brought Daisy away from her thoughts. "Last chance. Let him go, or you'll regret ever touching him."

Daisy could just barely see Cassius' body shaking from laughter. Robbie's eyes began to flame, a sign that his cool was wavering.

 _"_ _He doesn't know about the night job and he never will,"_ she remembered Robbie telling her.

"Robbie," she warned.

"He's gonna _kill_ him, Daisy!" He shouted in her ear, and Daisy could almost feel the angry heat that was spat at her.

Then, Robbie lost it, and the Ghost Rider burst forth, the skin melting away from his face to reveal flaming bone and a deathly grin attached to a white skull. The Ghost Rider whipped his chains, sending fire down the metal loops. Even from where Daisy was standing in the midst of crashing water, she could hear the snap of the iron chains as they were lashed through the air. One smooth motion sent the chains hurtling across the watery gap, and they enveloped themselves around Cassius' neck. And just like that, Cassius released his grip, sending the figure tumbling into the cold, angry water.

"No!" Daisy screamed, rushing forward. She threw out her hands, pulling her power through her gauntlets and out into the open space. She continued to yell, screaming for no reason but to gain the energy to fight. She watched the body go over the edge, now freefalling towards the water below. "Come on!" She yelled, hoping she could reach him in time. She had saved Rosalind from falling before. She had to be able to do it now. Forcing her powers towards him, she felt the quaking moving to catch him. Just as the waves were under him, a flaming chain wrapped itself around Daisy's wrist, yanking her arm up, along with the life-saving cushion. She grunted, falling forward as Cassius used Robbie's chains to pull her to the ground. She could only scream as her chest ripping apart as she watched him, never slowing, fall onto the rocks. The blood-curdling cry broke free from her lungs as all her anger was let loose in the yell. Only one name, as fury, mixed with raging quaking flooded the atmosphere, could be heard in the chaos. "GABE!"

She heard his body breaking, and all she could do was scream. The world grew quiet, her only focus on the small body that captured all of her attention. She lifted her head, only long enough to see through tear-ridded eyes, Robbie falling to his knees. His eyes were vacant, but she watched a single tear fall onto his cheek as his entire world fell off the edge of the waterfall and into the abyss.


	5. Chapter 5

**I think this may be the last chapter for this particular A.O.S. fanfic unless there are suggestions on where I should continue to take this story. Thank you so much for reading! Enjoy!**

Daisy's eyes snapped open, her heart racing and her blood pumping in her ears. She was breathing heavily, her skin sweaty and warm. Her hair was stuck to her face, the strands molded into the sweat. Once more, her heart broke. She had tried to move on from the accident, but it was always with her. Her failure caused a kid his life, and it was an awful end. She propped herself on her elbow and tried to sit up, but the pain in her side made her jump. She'd forgotten about that. She looked around at the white room. She'd forgotten she was in the med bay also, but why-

"Simmons," Daisy exhaled, remembering the needle. She ran a hand through her short hair and sighed. She wanted to be mad at Simmons for drugging her, but she knew her intentions were good. She hated to admit that Simmons was right when she said that Daisy wouldn't rest and would only harm herself further, but Simmons _was_ correct.

 _I deserve the pain_ , Daisy thought, flopping onto her back _. Whatever I'm feeling now is nothing compared to the pain Gabe experienced, or the agony Robbie is probably still feeling._

"God," Daisy groaned, placing a hand over her eyes.

"Nope, not God," Coulson's voice said, startling Daisy. "You'll have to look somewhere else for Him."

Daisy gave Coulson a small smirk. "Hey."

"How you feeling?" Coulson sat down in the chair next to Daisy's bed.

"Better," Daisy whispered.

"Good," Coulson nodded just as Simmons and Fitz appeared in the doorway.

Fitz put his hands on his hips and gave Daisy a small smile, but Simmons refused to look Daisy in the eye.

"Did you sleep well?" Coulson asked.

"Well, I didn't really have a choice," Daisy said, and immediately Simmons' eyes widened.

"What does that mean?" Coulson chuckled.

"Well, you know how Dr. Simmons is. She's so strict. She wouldn't let me leave here until I got some rest," Daisy replied with a subtle 'It's okay' grin to Simmons.

Simmons exhaled, clearly relieved that Daisy hadn't told what she'd done. "We can't very well have an injured agent when we need you to be one hundred percent," she stuttered but smiled widely.

"Speaking of," Coulson said, suddenly all business. "What the _hell_ were you thinking? You can die from infections, Daisy."

"Yeah, I-I know," Daisy crossed her legs beneath her and sat upright on the bed.

"Then why would you keep this from us? We're your family," Coulson gestured around the small room at Fitz and Simmons. "Why would you make yourself suffer like that?"

Daisy sighed, resting her elbows on her knees and then placing her chin on her hands. Gabe's face flashed across her mind, and she flinched internally. "Because," she whispered. "I deserve it."

"No, Daisy," Simmons suddenly spoke up, her tone fierce. "You most certainly do not deserve to suffer."

"You guys have _no idea_ -" Daisy choked out.

"No, Daisy, _you_ have no idea," Coulson raised his voice. "We have all lost someone, and some of us are responsible for deaths." He sighed, inhaling quietly. "So many people have lost their lives on my account. Not only that, but I've caused some, both by accident and on purpose. We've all lost, but that doesn't mean we're not good people."

"Daisy," Simmons took a step forward. "You're one of the best people I know. You did not cause Gabe's death. Cassius caused his death. _He_ is responsible for ending that young boy's life, _not_ you," she squeezed Daisy's hand with fervor, as if she could convince the young woman of her words with her hands.

"But," Daisy stammered as tears began to fall. "I _had_ him. I could _feel_ that he was safe, but then-"

"Then Cassius stopped you. There was nothing you could do. You were stuck in an impossible situation," Coulson said. "You did what you could. You can tell yourself that it was you fault every day for the rest of your life, but that won't make the lie true."

Daisy inhaled a shaky breath, her body trembling, but she nodded. "Okay."

Simmons stepped forward and threw her arms around Daisy's neck, embracing her.

"I'm sorry," she whispered in Daisy's ear.

Daisy shook her head. "No, it's okay. Thank you for not giving up on me."


	6. Chapter 6

**As requested by Magicfull, I'm continuing this story. Please give suggestions on content or things you would like to see happen! Thank you so much!**

"Can I _please_ get out of this bed now?" Daisy rolled her eyes as she begged Simmons for the hundredth time. "It's been days. I feel fine."

Simmons walked over to Daisy, an eyebrow raised, and checked her temperature yet again.

"You've already done this," Daisy huffed. "My temperature is normal, I'm not sweating, and look," Daisy said, patting her cheek with her hand, "There's color in my cheeks."

"Let me look at your wound," Simmons said, completely ignoring Daisy's attempts at freedom.

"You looked at it yesterday," Daisy whined. "It's normal; there's no redness and no pus. You said yourself that it was healing 'quite nicely,'" she added the last part in as close of an accent she could achieve to Simmons'.

"Ugh," Simmons sighed. "Awful accent." But Daisy just smiled obnoxiously.

"Okay! Fine!" Simmons threw up her hands. "You may leave."

"Finally," Daisy huffed, almost jumping off the bed. Before she ran out the door though, she stopped and backtracked a couple steps. Turning to Simmons, she pulled her into a hug. "Thank you," she whispered. "For everything."

"I'm just happy you're alright," Simmons whispered back.

The two pulled apart and Daisy gave Simmons a grin before she exited out of the little white room.

"Hey, Tremors," Mack chuckled deeply. "Good to see you up and about."

"It's so nice to be out of that little room. I was going crazy in there," Daisy shook her head.

"I can imagine," he chuckled again, shaking his head. Suddenly his face hardened and he put his large hands on Daisy's shoulders, looking her in the eyes. "You know you scared us all pretty good there, Tremors."

"Yeah, I-"

"Why didn't you tell me?"

"Because-"

"It happened during the LMD incident, didn't it?" Mack asked, demanding her attention.

Daisy looked down, nodding slowly. "Yeah, it did."

There was a string of silence. "You are not responsible for Gabe's death," Mack said out of nowhere.

"How did you-"

"Turbo told me. He told me why you didn't go to Simmons for help, and why you believed that you deserved to suffer," Mack's jaw clenched, seeming to bite down the words he wanted to continue saying.

"I know," Daisy said. "I had an…intervention you could say."

"So you're good?" He asked, his eyebrows lifting slightly as he peered down at Daisy.

"Yeah," she nodded. "Losing a kid like Gabe is still sad, but I'm better with myself and what happened. I did what I could, but," she closed her eyes and took a breath, "Cassius killed Gabe. It wasn't my fault."

Mack smiled, rubbing Daisy's back comfortingly as he embraced her. "I care about you, kid. We all do."

"I know," she said. "Thank you, Mack."

"Anytime, Tremors," he smiled down at her. "Now, get out of here and go take a shower," he pushed her gently as she grinned back.

Daisy walked into her bunk room, the messy bed still the same from when she had left it almost a week ago. Fitz is always calling her a slob, and he's not wrong. She smiled to herself as she grabbed a towel, new clothes and headed for the shower.

Although Daisy felt a whole lot better and much more like her old self, her side still wasn't 100%. The hot water that hit it burned, so Daisy turned, keeping her left side away from the water. The clean liquid felt so nice running over her body, especially after she had felt so gross for days.

After finishing in the shower, Daisy dressed quickly, eager to get back into training. She left her room on the search for May.

"Daisy," May rounded the corner, almost running into Daisy. The senior agent smiled sweetly at the young woman. "How are you?"

"I'm a lot better," Daisy grinned.

"Well, good," May smirked, "because tomorrow morning we're sparring, so be ready," she said, pointing a finger at Daisy.

"No problem," Daisy smirked, feeling her power rushing through her.


	7. Chapter 7

**I do not own Marvel's Agents of Shield or its characters. They belong to Marvel and its creators.**

Daisy grunted as May flipped her onto the mat for the second time in two minutes. "I feel like you're enjoying this," Daisy huffed.

"Just a little," May grinned. "Come on, on your feet. Let's go again."

Daisy pushed herself up off the mat, grimacing when her side burned.

"You good?" May asked, her hands already up protecting her face.

"Yeah," Daisy said, but her face said otherwise. "Let's go. I'm good."

May shrugged, readying her stance, her feet apart.

Daisy put her hands up, staring May down. They circled around the mat like two lions in a battle for dominance. Then Daisy lunged, her fist heading for May's face. The more experienced agent ducked, trying to get a punch in, but Daisy brought her elbows down to protect herself. They sparred, and as Daisy threw a punch, May blocked and vice versa. This went on for several minutes before Daisy could feel her stamina wavering. The infection and sickness had taken more of toll on her than she had thought.

 _I thought I'd be over it by now_ , she thought with frustration.

She didn't want to seem weak in front of May, but her body couldn't handle the exertion yet. Daisy was too distracted by her own thoughts that she didn't see May lower her shoulder for a hook. Not only that, but Daisy's reflexes weren't fast enough to protect her torso, so May's fist came in at full speed. Daisy yelled, her healing side taking the full impact of the hit. Daisy fell to her knees, the wound raging with pain. May's eyes widened, frozen in her position from throwing the punch.

"Oh my god, Daisy," she said, coming alive. "I forgot, I'm so sorry."

May bent down, putting a hand on Daisy's shoulder. Daisy was hunched over, breathing hard as she tried to control the pain in her abdomen. She shook her head. "It-it's okay. I just-I need a minute."

Then it was May's turn to shake her head. "No, Daisy," she said almost sternly. "I'm taking you to Simmons. We just got you back. I'm not going to let you wander off without treatment and pull the same stunt that almost got you killed."

"May, I'm fi-"

"That's an order," May said. "Come on," she helped Daisy stand, holding onto her biceps as support.

Daisy grimaced, her hand immediately finding her side as if covering the wound would perform a magic trick and make the pain disappear. Her stomach dropped when she felt warmth against her fingertips.

"Damn it," Daisy whispered involuntarily.

"What?" May asked, her eyes briefly flickering with worry.

"Uh," Daisy stuttered. "I-" she broke off, slowly releasing her hand from her side. As she had feared, shiny red blood covered her palm.

"Damn it," May gasped, turning Daisy's body towards her, only to see the dark stain slowly spreading over the gray material. "Keep a hand on that," she said. "Come on, we're going to Simmons."

The two agents walked as fast as Daisy could bear, but she could feel the blood seeping through her fingers and down her hip. They tried to be as inconspicuous as possible, but with Daisy bent over, her face sweaty, and her left hand covered in blood, they gained some unwanted attention. Piper noticed them, walking over to them, confusion on her face.

"Agent May?" she asked. "Agent Johnson?"

May sighed, rolling her eyes. Piper saw Daisy's expression and the blood on her side and she acted immediately, putting an arm around Daisy's waist.

"Where are you headed?" she asked.

"Simmons," Daisy groaned and Piper nodded.

They reached Simmons in the lab a lot faster with Piper practically holding Daisy on her feet. Simmons was looking at something under a microscope as the trio stumbled into the room. She heard the commotion and lifted her head, her face dropping instantly.

"Daisy…" her voice faded.

"It was my fault," May said, lowering Daisy onto a chair. "We were going a couple rounds and I hit her. I completely forgot about it."

"May," Daisy sighed. "It's fine."

Simmons found some medical supplies and walked over to Daisy who still had a bloody hand over her side. As Simmons approached, she removed her hand, the blood squishing between her hand and her shirt. Simmons slowly lifted Daisy's shirt, clean gauze pads in hand to clean the blood from around the previously healing wound. A small pile of bloody gauze formed on the floor as Simmons finished. She looked at the wound and sighed.

"You reopened the wound," Simmons said.

"I got that," Daisy tried to joke, but her grin disappeared when she saw Simmons' serious look.

"It's worse than when you first got stabbed because the scab pulled extra tissue with it," Simmons said. "It's going to need stitches."

"Don't groan at me, Daisy" Simmons scolded when Daisy groaned loudly. "If you had taken it easy like I told you to, then you wouldn't be in this situation… _again_."

"I know," Daisy said. "Stop mothering me, please."

"Well, that sounds awfully familiar," Simmons said, her voice higher. "It's almost as if you've said that to me before. Oh wait-" she raised her eyebrows at Daisy accusingly. "That's because you did. And you were in a similar situation, asking for my help, but not heeding my advice."

May looked at the two, her forehead crinkled in confusion.

"It's a long story," Daisy sighed, glancing at May.

"No, not really," Simmons chirped. "You see, when Daisy went all rogue, doing as she pleased, taking no consideration for us, she got into trouble. She got herself shot, and she came to me, wanting medical assistance, but refused to listen to me."

"Really?" Daisy said. "I thought we were past this."

"We are," Simmons said with a shrug. "I'm just frustrated with you right now, so I'm going to bring it up so you can maybe listen to me for once and _take it easy_."

Daisy nodded, the cold aggravating her wound and her mood. Simmons cleaned the last of the blood that she could before she grabbed a syringe of anesthetic.

"Take a deep breath and then hold it," Simmons said.

Daisy did as she was told and she felt the stinging pinch of a needle piercing her side. She made a face, the pain not terrible, but it wasn't pleasant either. Soon though, the pain from both the needle and her wound subsided. It was the best she had felt since before the LMD incident.

"Alright, Daisy, I'm starting the stitches," Simmons said and Daisy nodded.

"I'm going to get back to my duties," Piper said, stepping back.

"Thanks, Piper," May nodded to the agent before she exited the room.

Daisy could feel her skin being pulled, but she felt no pain, and it was amazing.

"Daisy," she heard. "I'm finished with your stitches."

Daisy opened her eyes, and she saw May and Simmons' faces. Then she glanced down at her side, the wound now just a thin red line with the stitches keeping the edges of the slice in place. Simmons bent down to put a dressing on the wound and she made eye contact with Daisy.

"You fell asleep," she said.

"Sorry," she said. "I'm just kind of tired."

"Do you get much sleep?" Simmons asked, her voice concerned.

Daisy opened her mouth to say 'yes' but May's fixed stare halted her in her tracks. "Not really," she whispered.

"Because of this?" Simmons asked, pointing a finger to the bandage.

"It hurt all the time, especially when I laid down. When you numbed me, all the pain went away. This is the best I've felt," Daisy admitted.

"You can always come to me for things like this," Simmons said. "I could give you some oral medication."

"I know, it's just- I don't-" Daisy faltered. She took a breath before she said, "I don't want to seem weak. I didn't come this far in my training and in S.H.I.E.L.D. to be rendered useless by a frickin' knife wound."

"Being weak and being stupid are two different things," May said.

"I know," Daisy said.

"You are one of the strongest people I know," May said, her arms crossed over her chest. "You've been shot at least four times, your wrist has been broken, you've had hairline fractures in both your arms, and even now with this knife wound, you didn't complain."

"Granted, you were stupid with the knife wound," Simmons said.

"Yes," May said, "but you are not weak, Daisy. I should know. I've trained you," she finished with a smirk.

"Thanks, May," Daisy said.

"Now," Simmons said standing. "You will rest that for _as long as possible_ , but if the world needs saving, you can ignore what I said. But-" she pointed a finger at Daisy, " _only_ if the world is going to explode or something. Got it?"

Daisy nodded. "Got it. Thank you, Simmons," she said and gave the scientist a quick smile before leaving the lab.

 **I'm going to focus on another character in the story while Daisy is "healing." If there are any suggestions on who I should focus on, please comment and let me know!**


	8. Chapter 8

"Bobbi," Hunter said as she passed.

"Yeah," she turned to face her ex-husband.

"What's going on with Daisy?" He asked.

"What do you mean?" Bobbi asked, her face full of confusion. "You were there when-"

"Not that," he said. "I was just talking to her and she said she wasn't going on this assignment."

Bobbi nodded. "Yeah. Daisy reopened her wound and Simmons said she couldn't go anywhere for a while."

"What are we going to do without her?" Hunter gasped.

"Hunter," Bobbi shook her head, "we completed assignments when Daisy didn't have any powers and we can do it again."

Hunter put his hands on his hips, but he nodded. "You're right, Bob. We make a pretty good team anyway, don't we?"

Bobbi nodded, a smile forming. "Yeah," she said. "Let's get suited up."

"Target is just ahead!" Bobbi yelled in the jet as she looked at her watch, the location pinging on the screen.

"I see it," May said from the pilot's seat. "We're coming in for the landing."

"Cloaking is strong," Mack sat next to May. "Turbo did a great job fixing the cloaking chip."

May smiled to herself as she shook her head.

"What?" Mack chuckled.

"You and your nicknames," she chuckled lightly. "Get ready for landing!" She yelled over her shoulder.

Bobbi and Hunter grabbed a loop over their heads, hanging on while the jet descended.

May got up from the cockpit, laying the headset on the seat after she'd landed.

"Bobbi, Hunter," May said, tossing them their comm links and Mack put his in his ear. "We're in and out, got it?"

"Got it," Bobbi nodded.

"What?" Hunter gasped. "Why can't we take anything? I could use some more guns."

Hunter's face quickly receded when May stared at him and he shut his mouth.

"Okay," he said slowly, "no freebies."

"Let's go," May said.

The team crept down several underground corridors, their guns and flashlights in front of them. They came to a split and May held up her hand to halt them. She looked at Bobbi and flicked her head, motioning her to the front of the group. Bobbi pulled out her watch and pushed a button before a scanner began reading the hallway. The infrared technology searched for heat, but the scan came back negative.

"Clear," Bobbi whispered, gesturing them to follow her.

The crew walked around the corner, their guns raised. Mack and Hunter turned, scanning their rear for any movement, but nothing showed.

"Bobbi," May jerked her head up. Bobbi followed her motion, noting the camera that was pointed toward the door at the end of the hallway. "It has to be this one; none of the other doors are secured."

"I'm on it," Bobbi said, pulling her tablet from behind her back, the light flashing on as the technology came alive. Several seconds passed and Bobbi looked up. "We're good," she said.

"We grab the box and go," May said sternly. "Unless complications arise, but we'll deal with that when it comes."

May opened the door, immediately bringing her gun up, but the room was empty. It was an office, decorated minimally, but it was clearly a room meant for a person of power. Bobbi was looking around the office, her guard up, but her curiosity peaking.

"Whose office is this?" She asked.

Mack narrowed his eyes, his flashlight shining on a giant portrait above the bureau. "Cassius Blake," he growled.

"What?" Bobbi gasped. "That Inhuman has an office?"

"Not just an office," May said. "Cassius has control of a multi-million dollar company, along with a powerful sway on the media."

"Wait," Hunter held up a hand. "Cassius. Isn't that the bloke that killed-"

"Yeah," Mack said, his voice still a growl, "and he almost killed Robbie and Tremors too."

"Hopefully if we find this box, we may get the advantage on him," May whispered, already searching through the bureau.

Bobbi walked over to help May look for the box, but a gleam caught her eye and she paused. She squinted, shining her flashlight on the portrait frame above her. She went to it, her head tilted in curiosity. She wasn't seeing things; a little lever at the base of the frame was sticking out from the bottom of the picture. She pulled the rod out and flicked the metal flap to the side. She grunted as she pulled the huge frame out, revealing a metal safe tucked into the wall.

"Guys," she said, her eyes glued to the find. "I think I found it."

May turned, her eyes widening, while Mack and Hunter hurried behind the bureau to join them.

"Turbo," Mack said to his comm, "We need you buddy. Can you get a location on this safe?"

"Is it electronic?" He heard in his ear.

"Yeah," Mack said, "and it looks high tech."

"Okay," Fitz's voice said. "Give me a moment."

The team looked at the safe anxiously but they didn't have to wait long because Fitz's voice was in their ears in a matter of seconds.

"And…done," he said, and the safe screen went from a deep red to blue. They heard a click before the safe opened.

"Nice work, Turbo," Mack chuckled.

"Rudimentary science." Mack could picture Fitz shrugging as he said those words.

May threw open the safe door and grabbed the little brown box from within. "We've got what we want. Let's get out without-" an alarm cut May off, its shrill scream piercing through the silence. "…any incidents," she continued dishearteningly.

"Move it!" Mack yelled, his rifle-axe in hand.

The team hurried out of the office, red flashing lights and blaring sirens causing chaos. The sound of heavy footsteps marching down the hall could be heard.

"Looks like we're fighting our way out of this," Hunter said.

The soldiers came around the corner, their uniforms black and red. Immediately the agents sprang into action, May leaping onto the lead soldier. Mack took out two in one swing, while Bobbi pulled her silver batons from behind her back, twirling them. She blocked a blow from one of the guys, her foot meeting with his chest and sending him flying. Instantly, two more were there, sending blows to Bobbi's face. She grunted as their fists connected with her jaw, and she felt her eyebrow split when a hand made contact with the side of her face. Clenching her jaw, Bobbi spit out a mouthful of blood and she gave the two soldiers and bloody smirk. The ends of her rods lit up in blue electricity, and Bobbi's actions were quicker than lightning. She hit the one guy across the face, and followed with a backhand with her baton. She pulled the baton across once more, shoving it into the guy's chest, and he stood there while the electricity shot through him before he dropped to the floor. The second guard was able to get under Bobbi's swing and he countered with a swipe to her feet. Bobbi crashed to the ground, but she blocked his blow, using her foot to kick his weapon away and strike with her own. He fell, and Bobbi pushed herself up off the ground, her chest heaving.

"Bob!" Hunter yelled. She looked at him, but his eyes were trained behind her. She turned around, and she met the gaze of Cassius Blake.

"Do not engage!" Bobbi heard May yell, but she was already rushing forward, her batons ready.

Bobbi ducked just as Cassius threw his fist at her, but he came again with a second blow. She blocked with her forearm and brought her weapon across his face with her other hand. The blow didn't even faze him, in fact, it only made him angry. His eyes grew dark and narrow, and Cassius shot his hand out, grabbing Bobbi by the throat. Even though Bobbi was only a few inches shorter than Cassius, he was able to raise her well above his own head. She gasped for breath, but her feeble attempts at air only sounded like gargled inhales.

"I killed a young boy with the flex of my hand," Cassius' rough voice whispered to Bobbi. "I can't wait for the Ghost Rider and Quake to find out what I'm really capable of." He smiled, drawing a knife from his pocket and he slashed Bobbi across her ribs. She cried out, but her cries sounded like choking noises coming from her crushed throat. Before Hunter was able to reach her, Cassius flung Bobbi against the wall and fled.

Hunter could hear the cracking sound that Bobbi's body created when she made impact with the wall, and she dropped to the ground in a motionless heap.

"Bob!" He yelled, rushing to her side. "Bobbi!"

He checked her neck for a pulse and he felt a thumping against his fingertips.

"Thank god," he exhaled heavily.

"We have to get out of here," May came over to Hunter's side. "Is she okay?"

"Yeah," he said. "I've got her." Hunter picked Bobbi up and drew he close to him.

The team rushed to the quinjet which was sitting cloaked outside the facility. Hunter rushed up the metal platform, laying Bobbi down. Her face was pale with blood from a cut above her eyebrow running down the side of her face and neck.

"Come on, Bob," Hunter sighed and rubbed his forehead, but he also smelled something metalllic. He looked at his hand and saw it was covered in dark red blood. He grew frantic, searching his body. He found blood on his shirt, but it wasn't his. "Bob…" he faltered when he saw the blood pooling beneath her. There was a gash across her ribs below her chest, and the wound was shiny, filled with warm blood.

"Bob's hurt!" Hunter yelled frantically.

"Mack," May looked at him, nodding behind her.

"She bleeding out really fast," Hunter said, his hands placed over her ribs to try and stop the bleeding.

"Here, press this into the wound," Mack pulled a handkerchief out of his back pocket.

Bobbi's face was pale, white in comparison to the red liquid that stained her face, and Hunter could see purple bruises forming around her throat from where Cassius had held her.

"Hold on, Bob," Hunter whispered to her. "We're gonna get back and you're gonna be alright. Just hold on."

"She'll be okay," Mack's deep voice tried comforting his friend.

"I'm gonna kill that bloody monster," Hunter hissed.

"He's an Inhuman," Mack said.

"You don't have to be an Inhuman to be a monster," Hunter growled.

 **The next chapter will be about Robbie and Daisy as they talk about past events.**


	9. Chapter 9

Daisy sat on the edge of her bed, her elbows resting on her knees. She inhaled slowly, smiling when she did so effortlessly. There was no hitch in her breath, and no burning to cause her agony. She looked down at her side and lifted the bottom of her shirt. Her stitches were out and there was a large scar in the middle of the scarring process; there was still some healing flesh, but mostly it was scar tissue.

 _And no fist can reopen scar tissue_ , Daisy thought. _Just a day or two more and I can join my team again in the field._

"Hey, Daisy," a deep voice said.

Daisy jumped, letting go of her shirt, and she whipped her head up to see who had addressed her.

"Robbie," Daisy's voice wavered slightly at the surprise visitor.

"I heard about what happened. Heard you weren't in the field for a little while," Robbie said, his shoulder leaning casually against the doorframe.

"Yeah, well I don't heal like you do," she sighed. "Why are you really here?" She asked.

Robbie sighed, pushing off the doorway, walking a few steps closer to Daisy.

"Coulson told me _why_ you were out," Robbie said in his gravely voice, his mustache twitching. "He told me what you said and he told me why you didn't get help."

"Right," Daisy nodded, clasping her hands together in front of her mouth.

"Daisy-"

"No, Robbie, I have some things I want to say first," Daisy said, rising off of her bed and walking to Robbie. "We haven't talked about what happened," she said.

"I know," Robbie whispered.

"I know you're still hurting, and you have every right to be because Gabe is your only family, but I was hurting too," Daisy exhaled shakily. "Gabe was a friend to me. Even when I first met him months ago, he was kind to me, and we'd grown to be friends."

Robbie looked at Daisy, his eyes shiny.

"What happened that day, I tried to save him. I _was_ going to save him, but then…" Daisy closed her eyes. "Then Cassius stopped me."

"Robbie," Daisy felt her eyes tearing up. "I'm sorry. I'm so sorry I wasn't able to save Gabe."

Robbie chuckled, his eyes also brimming with tears. "Daisy, I don't blame you for Gabe's death."

"You don't?" Daisy asked. "Then why haven't you-"

"I needed some space," Robbie said. "You of all people should understand that."

"Yeah," Daisy folded her arms across her chest. "I understand comepletely."

"I needed to deal with his death in my own way, and I know you did what you could, but Cassius is the one who killed Gabe." Robbie's jaw clenched thinking of the past. "Whether you had struck before me or not, I see now that Cassius was going to kill Gabe either way."

"I still feel like there was something I could have done," Daisy said, wiping away a tear right as it fell.

"Do you believe in fate, or God, maybe?" Robbie asked.

"Not really," Daisy said. "The nuns used to talk about God a lot, and the only thing I chose to remember is 'God is Love'. That saying is comforting, and I need more comfort in a world like this."

"Well, I believe now that no matter what we did that day, that day was the day Gabe was supposed to die," Robbie said.

"Why do you believe that? Don't you want him to be here?"

"I want my little brother to still be alive with every fiber in my body," Robbie said, his voice breaking as tears ran down his cheeks. "I loved him more than anyone on this planet, but he's not here. He died, and I believe that no matter what we would have done, Cassius still would have killed him."

"Robbie," Daisy reached a hand up to his shoulder, but Robbie stopped her.

"I'm still hurting, yes," he said, "but I've made peace with the fact that he's gone." Robbie stiffened. "Cassius is going to pay for what he's done though."

"I'll help you," Daisy nodded.

"Well," Robbie sighed. "I have to get out of here. I don't want to stick around too long and risk Coulson adding me to his S.H.I.E.L.D. team."

"We wouldn't be against it," Daisy smiled.

"Thanks, but-"

"You work alone and on your own terms," Daisy said. "Yeah, we know."

Robbie shook his head, grinning. "I'll hopefully see you out there in the field real soon."

Daisy nodded. "Oh, and Robbie," Daisy ran up to him before he could walk away. "Thank you."

"No problem," he said before he turned and walked down the hall.


	10. Chapter 10

**Sorry this chapter is so late, life has been a little busy during break. Let me know what you think of this and comment if you want me to do a certain prompt! Thank you as always for reading my work!**

 **-Brielle**

Daisy walked into the lab, tablet in hand. She was Simmons' feet while she was grounded at the base, so she held all the scientific nonsense that Simmons needed.

"Bobbi," Daisy gasped at the sight of the tall blonde, bruised, bloody, and looking awfully ragged sitting on the lab table.

"Hey, Daisy, how are you?" She asked, smiling, even though her eyes looked tired.

"How am I doing? How are you? Are you okay?" Daisy walked over to Bobbi, her jaw open.

"Three broken ribs, twelve stitches, bruises on her larynx, and a split forehead," Simmons interrupted. "Have I missed anything?"

"A pissed-off ex-husband," Hunter growled as he entered the lab, headed straight for Bobbi.

"What happened out there?" Daisy asked, her stare bouncing between the three faces.

"Bloody Blake, that's what happened," Hunter sneered, his arms crossed defensively across his chest.

" _Cassius_ Blake?" Daisy's voice increased slightly.

"Hunter," Bobbi scolded, eyeing him warily. "You shouldn't have said anything."

"And you shouldn't have gone after Cassius!" Daisy said. "What the _hell_ were you thinking?!"

"I wasn't," Bobbi said, her face softening.

"The mission wasn't about going after Cassius, it was about getting information," Hunter said. "He showed up in the middle of our escape fight and Bob," he looked his ex-wife in the eyes, "Bob was just doing her job."

"You could have gotten yourself _killed_!" Daisy yelled, her hand slapping against her thigh in frustration. "Cassius won't hesitate to kill you, just like he did-" Daisy stopped herself immediately, guilt and pain exploding within her at the though of Gabe. She took a breath, placing a hand over her eyes before she managed to look at Bobbi.

"I'm sorry," she said quietly. "I shouldn't have yelled like that. You're an amazing agent, Bobbi. I just-I care about you."

"We care about you too," Bobbi said, reaching over and placing a hand on Daisy's shoulder. Bobbi grimaced when the pain in her abdomen screamed for attention, but she ignored it.

"That's how we felt about you when you almost got yourself killed," Simmons said to Daisy.

"I'm sorry, Bobbi," Daisy whispered, pulling her into a gentle hug. "I'm glad you're alright."

Bobbi smirked. "For the most part."

"Oh," Daisy suddenly remembered why she had come into the lab in the first place. "I have the results from your…"

"Ah, yes, my improvement for the Night-Night serum," Simmons hastily looked at the tablet. "If my theory is correct, I should be able to alter the pigment in the serum to make an invisible gas. It would be much more subtle for airborne uses." Simmons looked at Bobbi and her face neutralized slightly. "However, there are better times for these matters, and now isn't one of them." She quickly took the tablet from Daisy and placed it on the lab table.

"I'm going to go back to my bunk for a little," Bobbi said, a pained gasp escaping her lips without her wanting.

"I'll give you a hand," Daisy said, stepping forward eagerly.

"Thanks, Daisy, but I've-" Bobbi tried to slip gently off the lab table, but between the pain in her head and the agony in her abdomen, it was too much and she fell to the floor.

"Bobbi," Daisy gasped, immediately bending to aid her.

Bobbi was visibly frustrated with herself, but she took Daisy's hand and stood. She leaned heavily on Daisy's shoulder, but Daisy was strong now, stronger than she had been in a while since the incident.

"I've got you," Daisy said. "Learn from my mistake; receiving help doesn't mean you're weak, so please, let me help you," Daisy whispered.

Bobbi inhaled shakily, and closed her eyes, but she nodded.

"I'll be…ah…elsewhere, okay, Luv?" Hunter pointed over his shoulder and down the opposite hallway.

Bobbi nodded, but her face instantly scrunched in discomfort.

"Come on," Daisy said, pulling Bobbi along and out of the lab.

The two women staggered in silence for a while before Bobbi broke it.

"It's good to see you well again," she said. "Sitting around doesn't suit you."

Daisy chuckled. "It doesn't suit you, either, but you're gonna have to take it easier for your own sake."

"You know I can't sit around," Bobbi shook her head. "Jemma can't force me away from missions either because I have higher clearances than she does; she can't tell me to do anything." She laughed quietly. "But clearly, even when she tells you to do something, you ignore her."

"I know," Daisy smirked briefly before her grin faded. "But I learned my lesson from that. Because I was impatient, I had to sit out even longer than if I had just stayed put."

"I'm going to take only enough time to heal these broken ribs," Bobbi said just as her breath hitched, and her back arched slightly from the pain. "Once my breathing is fine, I'll be good to go."

"You don't want to go through rehab again," Daisy said. "Rehab is a bi-"

"Bit of a challenge for me," Bobbi interrupted with a sly grin. "Having to stay back from any and all missions was tough."

"You almost died though, Bob," Daisy said softly. "A rifle shot you through your chest from close range."

"You almost died too," Bobbi said, staring Daisy down with one of her looks.

They stopped against a wall, Bobbi breathing heavily. "How is your wound, anyway?" She said between pants.

Daisy let go of Bobbi to lift the bottom of her shirt up. The long, white scar laced with a very light pink stood out against her healthy skin. Daisy ran a hand along it, never flinching with the contact between her hand and the blemish. "All healed," she smiled.

"That's a nice one," Bobbi nodded. "You'll have that one for the rest of your life."

"Yeah," Daisy said with a sigh, but she quickly perked up and shrugged. "If that's the price I pay for being a S.H.I.E.L.D. agent, then that's not too bad."

Bobbi shook her head. "You're much more optimistic than I am," she huffed. Bobbi wrapped an arm around her abdomen, the pain becoming almost too much to bear. She recalled how two years ago Ward and Agent 33 had kidnapped her and tortured her, which resulted in the almost-fatal gun shot.

 _If you can keep calm and focused with needles sticking out from under your fingernails, then damn it, you can get past this Bobbi_ , she though with determination.

She closed her eyes and slowed her breathing, focusing only on her heartbeat. It was healthy and pumping steadily. She forced the pain out of her mind, standing straighter with each passing second.

"You okay, Bobbi?" Daisy asked, a hand on her shoulder.

"Yeah, I'm good," Bobbi nodded eagerly. "Let's go."


	11. Chapter 11

**Several days later**

"It's nice to have you back," Lincoln said, planting a gentle kiss on Daisy's forehead.

"Simmons is great and all, but I was going crazy in that lab," Daisy huffed. "I need to kick someone's butt, stretch my legs a little."

Lincoln laughed lightly. "I'm sure there will be plenty of opportunities to do that on this mission."

"Alright Shake n' Bake," Hunter sighed. "Let's get a move on."

"Someone's a little grumpy," Daisy said, whipping her head around.

"I'm not grumpy," Hunter shook his head and crossed his arms.

"Really?" Daisy said, her voice higher than usual. "Because I think you're grumpy since Bobbi is out of field work for a little while."

"Wha-" Hunter scoffed. "No, that's not why. It's-" He halted at Daisy's face.

Daisy turned to Lincoln, her eyebrows raised. "He's grumpy because of Bobbi."

"Shut up," Hunter scoffed again, but he left Daisy and Lincoln to haul his stuff onto the bus.

"His mood is really off," Lincoln said in surprise.

"He says that he can't stand Bobbi, but he clearly cares for her," Daisy said, folding her arms.

Lincoln put an arm around Daisy's waist and drew her closer to him. Daisy smiled, putting her arms around his neck and kissed him lightly on the lips.

"I assume your wound is 100 percent," Lincoln smirked.

"110 percent," Daisy said, her face close to his.

"So," Lincoln said, "if we wanted some time together, you'd be up for that later?"

"I don't know," she said. "That depends on if we come back from this mission alive. If we get back alive and in one piece, I'll take you up on your offer," she said with a sly smile.

"Deal," Lincoln smiled and kissed Daisy.

"You better be mixing your superpowers and not saliva," May said, her voice dripping with repulse, her sunglasses hiding any sign of teasing behind the dark frames.

"Right," Daisy exhaled, biting her lip and pulling away from Lincoln. "I guess that's our cue to get on the bus."

"Right behind you," Lincoln said, motioning with a hand to the ramp of the bus.

Bobbi sat on the table in the lab, waiting for her annual check-up with Simmons. Breathing was a little easier, but she was nowhere near healed. She was hoping she could get her stitches out today, but she'd have to wait to see what Simmons decided.

"Hello, Bobbi," Simmons said with a smile as she entered the lab.

Bobbi greeted her with a smile.

"Alrighty, then," Simmons walked over with gloves on, looking Bobbi over. She pressed on Bobbi's neck lightly. "Bruises on the throat have faded. Is there pain there?"

"No," Bobbi shook her head.

"Alright, what about your breathing. How are your ribs feeling?" Simmons asked.

"It's better, but they're still painful," and just as Bobbi said that, she winced when Simmons lifted her shirt and touched her torso.

"Sorry," she said. "The bruising is still dark and I can feel unevenness, so your ribs can still use more time to heal."

"Can I get the stitches out?" Bobbi asked hopefully.

"I believe so," Simmons said. "The knife wound is healing quite nicely. It should be alright to take your stitches out."

Bobbi rejoiced internally as Simmons went over to retrieve the instruments needed to take out her stitches. Besides some discomfort on her ribs while getting her stitches out, Bobbi was in significantly less pain than before. She can handle pain, but broken ribs are one of the things that are hard for her to deal with. It's a constant pain, because they hurt when she breathes and she breathes every single second. There's no rest from the agony.

"All finished," Simmons said, putting her tools away. "Just wait until your ribs have healed and then you can finally get back out into the field."

"Thanks, Jemma," Bobbi gave her a soft smile and she slid off the table, walking out of the lab.

Bobbi inhaled deeply to feel her torso without the stitches in, but she breathed too deep, and her intake was halted by the pain. She bent over, wrapping an arm around her side instantly. She glared, frustrated all over again, but kept on going down the hall.

 **I know this chapter was short, but the next one will be longer. Any suggestions? Plot help? Comment and let me know what I can do to make the story more interesting.**

 **-Brielle**


	12. Chapter 12

**Sorry it's been a while. College just started back up into the new semester and things have been busy. Hopefully this chapter will bring some closure. Comment anything you would like to see or any prompts from any other show you may want me to write.**

 **-Brielle**

The quinjet landed, its cloaking on. The team were waiting by the ramp as it lowered onto the ground.

"The info we were able to get from Blake led us to these coordinates," May said, holding up the previously encrypted drive. "Let's stop this bastard once and for all," her eyes narrowed in determination.

Lincoln walked ahead of Daisy, his broad shoulders, though small compared to Mack, were well built. He walked with his head up as if he wanted to protect Daisy. Daisy smirked, flipping her hair out of her face. She knew that Lincoln knew she didn't need protecting, but she though the chivalrous thought was sweet.

"You good, Tremors?" Mack said next to her.

"Yeah," Daisy said, stretching out her shoulders. "I'm ready for this."

"You've been out for a while," Mack said. "I don't want you getting hurt," he shifted his rifle-axe in his hands.

"Simmons cleared me _and_ I passed May's physical exam. I'm ready," Daisy said.

"I want to get a good whack in on this guy," Mack said.

"We all do," Daisy said. "Robbie especially," she whispered softly. She knew that was false. Robbie didn't care about getting a hit in. He wanted to end this. He didn't just want Cassius to suffer; he wanted Cassius dead.

They made their way into an empty hanger. It was large and abandoned. Why would Cassius have gone to such lengths to keep these coordinates safe when all that was there was an empty warehouse?

"Quake," Daisy heard, and the voice sent chills down her spine and anger through her veins. His voice was slow, his words precise.

"Cassius," Daisy growled, peering around her.

"Where's your skeleton friend?" He walked forward towards the group, slowly appearing from out of the shadows. "The Ghost Rider," he said with a slight chuckle. His arms were out to the side as if he was welcoming them to his home. Daisy met his gaze and she saw that his eyes held a sense of victory and arrogance.

"Surprised that I'm here?" He asked, chuckling loudly and rubbing his hands together. "You didn't think you figured out this place all on your own did you?"

Daisy was caught off guard for a split second.

"I led you right to me," Cassius said with a smirk before his face turned to stone. "So we can finish this once and for all."

"Why are you trying to kill us?" Daisy asked.

"It's simple, really," Cassius said. "I would have thought you'd have figured it out by now."

"Enlighten me," Daisy sneered.

"You see," Cassius paced. "if I kill you and your buddy the Ghost Rider, I'll have the powers of two of the most powerful Inhumans on the planet."

"That's what the slimy bastard does," Mack exhaled. "He steals powers."

"Well, from a scientific point of view, his DNA is altered so he can absorb another's genetic markings and mold them to his own," Simmons voice said in everyone's earpiece.

"It's actually quite fascinating," Fitz said. "Um, sorry." Daisy could see Simmons staring Fitz down in the lab.

Daisy turned her attention back to what Cassius just said. "Technically, the Ghost Rider isn't an Inhuman," Daisy said. "Sorry to burst your bubble."

"Really?" Cassius rubbed his bearded jaw with a hand. "Then what is he?"

"Your worst nightmare," Robbie growled as he appeared from behind Cassius, his chains flickering with dangerous fire. He whipped them behind his head before he slashed them at Cassius.

Cassius wasn't prepared for the attack, so Robbie was able to get a wrap around his wrist, yanking the man down to the ground on one knee. However, Cassius just laughed.

"You thought your pretty metal toys could stop me?" He shook his head, standing back up. "Don't you remember what happened last time you tried to you these on me?" His eyes narrowed and stared down Robbie. "Someone didn't make it out alive. What was the name you yelled?"

Robbie screamed, the flesh melting off his face, the Ghost Rider taking over. The flames that engulfed his head were wild with fury, red with agony. He took both hands on the chains and yanked as hard as he could, pulling Cassius to him and greeting him with a fist to the side of his face. Cassius flew through the air, landing on the ground. He stood up, not even phased.

"Come on, hot head," Cassius motioned with several fingers to him.

Robbie attacked with his chains, whipping them like a wrangler. Although Cassius was a large man, he was fast, and he was using that to his advantage. Cassius quickly gained the upper hand, throwing Robbie across the ground like a ragdoll. Lincoln took a step forward, but Daisy grabbed him by his bicep.

"Don't," she said. "If he gets his hands on you, he'll kill you, and then he'll get your powers,"

"We can't just do nothing," Lincoln said.

"Then let's put some bullets in the son of a bitch," May said, stepping forward with her gun. She emptied a whole magazine into Cassius, but they didn't even leave a mark.

"He's impenetrable from the outside," Daisy said to May.

"So how do we defeat this guy?" May said, reloading her gun.

"What if we can somehow get under his skin?" Mack said.

"Hunter, you're up. You get under everybody's skin," May said with a slight smirk.

"Oh ha-ha," Hunter rolled his eyes and put his hands on his hips. "How the bloody hell do you expect to beat him?"

He's impenetrable from the outside…

"What if I can get under his skin _literally_?" Daisy said. "I've done it before…under different circumstances…"

There was a silence within the group. Cassius flung Robbie for the last time and he skipped across the cement, stopping close to the team. His face came back together, and the flames on his chains died down. Now Cassius came for Daisy, a smirk on his face.

"Do it," May said with a curt nod.

She faced Cassius, bringing her gauntlets up before he could reach them. Daisy threw her hands forward, the power within her rushing out of her, even to the very tips of her fingers. She focused on Cassius' vibrations, the movement of his being. She recalled how Jaiying had taught her to listen to the mountain. She closed her eyes, listening for Cassius' body. She kicked her boot against the ground, cementing her footing into place. Her eyes snapped open, staring at Cassius. His eyes, which were usually so cocky and arrogant, had something else hidden in them. Could it be? Daisy's lips curled up slightly when she could feel his heartbeat. It was elevated ever so slightly, but she knew; he was finally worried for his life. Daisy's dark eyes pierced Cassius' and she twisted her hands, centering her vibrations. She watched as Cassius' face grew dark, his eyes realizing what was happening. He began to shake, his entire body trembling with the force of Daisy's vibrations. Her heart began beating faster and faster, her blood pressure rising as anger took over. She witnessed Cassius fall to his knees, his eyes wide in utter terror. Blood began to drip out of his nose, then his mouth, and finally his eyeballs. His screams filled the hanger as Daisy broke him from the inside.

"Tremors!" Mack yelled. "Stop! Don't do this!"

"Daisy," May said next to her, a hand on her shoulder. "We just need to get the _not_ kill him," but Daisy didn't care about his life.

"Daisy," Lincoln put a hand on her other shoulder, his voice soft and calm. "I know you want to kill him. I know the power within you wants to be used, but this isn't you. You save people. You worked so hard to control your powers so you wouldn't hurt anyone. You tried to tell everyone when we first met that Inhumans aren't bad; they're misguided." Lincoln looked Daisy in her eyes. "You are not a killer. Yes, Cassius is one of the bad ones, but if you kill him, then you're no better than he is."

Daisy was fighting internally. She wanted Cassius to die. She wanted to kill him, but she couldn't do it. She looked at Cassius and yelled, her breath and body shaking the earth. The anger and pain made the ground tremble and she fell to her knees, her chest heaving up and down when she finally released Cassius. Lincoln dropped to his knees beside her and wrapped his arms around her, holding her as she breathed. Robbie got up and then bent down to put two fingers against Cassius' neck and waited for a sign.

He looked at Daisy. "He's alive," he nodded and Daisy nodded back, relief flooding through her.

"He'll pay for what he's done," Lincoln whispered as he held Daisy, kissing her head lightly.

Daisy held onto Lincoln's arms, taking his strength to help her. She watched Robbie's eyes as he looked down upon Cassius' fallen form. His eyes met hers and they were filled with anger and sadness. A tear escaped down his cheek before he turned and fled.

"We've got Blake. We're bringing him in," May said.


End file.
